North End Grill

North End Grill has quickly become on our favorite neighborhood spots. Battery Park City, only a 10 minute walk from home has many new and interesting culinary delights to check out, however, Danny Meyer's newest addition is one not to miss.

Our first venture to North End Grill was a few weeks after its soft opening. A little hesitant about what to expect, the two things I knew for certain from the Meyer food empire was that the service would be impeccable and the food, high quality.  As you enter the restaurant there is an instant buzz streaming from the bar area, people chatting, drinking, and eating apps. The space is unique as it has a warm industrial feel to it. It's a beautifully decorated space, although my one critique would be the lighting is a tad bright and overwhelming in the main dining area. We sat and ordered a cocktail; there were a number of unique and interesting creations. We tried the Tamarind Margarita (Tequila, Fresh Tamarind, Cointreau, Fresh Orange and Lime Juice) , which tasted clean, and not too sweet, just how I like them; and the Kachumber Kooler (Gin, Cucumber, Cilantro, Green Chilies, Fresh Lime Juice, and I subbed Gin for Vodka), this was delicious, a lot of flavors hit you all at once, so it's definitely an intense drink, but smooth and incredibly refreshing. With cocktails in hand, orders placed, we were ready to start eating!









Chris ordered a Montauk Fluke Crudo with orange and red beets and a little side of ginger. He said it was so fresh that it melted in your mouth. While he does not normally love beets, and thought it to be a curious pairing, he said the tad bit of sweeteness the beets added to the fish only enhanced the flavor.











One of the unique (and awesome) sections on North End Grill's menu is the Egg section. There are generally four to five different type of egg dishes to choose from, each sounding better than the next. On this food adventure, I went with a classic, egg and mushroom dish, but wait, it is not as boring as it sounds, because the mushrooms featured in this gem, were hen of the wood mushrooms, quite possibly my favorite mushrooms in existence. The eggs were soft, creamy, buttery, and simply outstanding for such a basic dish. The mushrooms were salty, meaty, and added just the perfect amount of texture and flavor.











In sticking with his fish theme, Chris ordered the evening's special, a whole roasted red snapper, cooked over their wood burning grill (which is a specialty of North End), sprinkled with salt, pepper, and drizzled with some olive oil. Chris was in heaven, that's exactly how he loves his fish, simple, clean, and fresh.












I ordered the strip loin, prepared exactly the same way as the fish. The wood burning flame added an intense smokey flavor; it was incredible. The meat was cooked to temperature and salted perfectly. For our side dishes, we ordered truffle mashed potatoes in a mushroom truffle butter gravy, which were rich and insanely yummy, and some tasty charcoal grilled shishito peppers, which I must warn, had a number of really spicy ones, which is rare, but be prepared.

We tried to save room for dessert but the only thing we could fit were dessert drinks. I ordered a glass of the 2009 Semillon, Chateau La Rame, Sainte-Croix-du-Mont, from Bordeaux, France, and Chris ordered a glass of scotch off of their insanely diverse and lengthy scotch menu.

North End Grill is a wonderful addition to the neighborhood. Whether you sit in the main dining room or the bar, the service will be impeccable and you are guaranteed a high quality meal.

North End Grill
http://northendgrillnyc.com/
Tel: 646-747-1600

Address:
104 North End Avenue
New York, NY 10282

Hours:
Lunch: Monday - Friday: 11:30am - 2:00pm
Dinner: Sunday - Thursday: 5:30pm - 10:00pm, Friday - Saturday: 5:30pm - 11:00pm
Brunch: Saturday - Sunday: 11:00am - 2:30pm